richards



@nimh faire datent @Hita CELIUS E. RICHARDS, OF NORTH ATTLEBOR,-MASSACHUSETTS Laim Patent No. 64,145, (zaad April 23, 1867.

IMPROVEMENT AIN HATS.

TO ALL'WHQB'I IT.v MAY CONCERN:

Be it known that I, CELIUS E. RICHARDS, of North Attleboro, in thecounty of Bristol, and State of Massa chusetts,have invented a new andimproved Hat or Bonnet of Paper; and I do hereby declare that thefollowing is n `full, clear, and exactA description of the'same,reference being had to the accompanyingdrawings, making part 'of thisspecification, in which- Figure 1 is a side elevation of a misss hatconstructed' in accordance with'my improvementg'and Figure 2 is a topview of the same.

By the well-known.methods of making hats or bonnets from straw, palmleaf, and similar material, the material is first reduced to strips ofsuit-able width and length, and these are braided by hand into bands ofve strands, more or less, and these bands are sewn together into therequisite'form for the hat or 'bon-net` or the hat or bonnet is built upfrom the centre ofthe crown by plaiting a small number of strands of thematerial together atfirst, and afterwards' adding to and multiplying thenumber of strands as the circumference of the fabric is increased, orreducing the number of the strands, as the case may require, according'to the/shape `of the article, the ends of the added strands beingsuffered to protrude a short distance from the inside of the fabric,and, after the work is completed, being trimmed olf evenlynvith thesurface, if desired.` In lieu of straw, palm leaf", and other naturalmaterial, paper has been cut into slips'or strips of the required width,and woven or plaited in the manner mentioned, and afterward boundtogether by means of a dressing of varnish, and

finally protected from Vinjury by wetting or moisture by covering thefabric, after it is converted into the desired shape, with one or moreapplications of the varnish to make it water-proof, upon which thedurability of the fabric, as well as the shape of the article, chieflydepends. v v

The object of my invention, however, is to employ paper in such a formas to be equally durable with the straw or palm leaf, and be treated inall respects like those materials in the variety of manipulations andthe usage to which hats and bonnets are likely to be subjected. j

My improvement consists in fabricatingl hats, bonnets, and similararticles `from paper twisted while moist with soule giutinous materialinto thread or twine, and afterwards braided into plaits or bands, orwoven or plaited together in the usual way. By twisting tlre fibres ofthe paper they are united firmly and compactly together, which gives thematerial great strength and durability, which is greatly enhanced in thefabric when a multitude of such threads or twines are woven or plaitedtogether, so that the hat or bonnet that is fabricated from paper inthis way possesses all the durability of straw or palm leaf, and fromthe nature of the material it may be treated by the same processes andsubjected to'the same usage `and exposure to the weather without injury.

The kinds of paper which I prefer for the fabrication of my improved hator bonnet, are those made from straw or grasses, or similar vegetablematerial, as such paper may be dyed and bleached'by the same processesand with the same Substances A as are now employed by manufacturers andothers in palm-leaf and straw goods, so that my improved article may bereadily substituted for those of straw, Snc., with advantage to both themanufacturer and consumer. i l

There is a considerable advantage growing out of the fabrication of hatsand bonnets of paper, thread, or twine,'in the ability to produce sucharticles at a cheaper cost than can be'p'ossible with any materialcomposed of detached lengths or pieces like those of straw and palmlea-f heretofore' employed, in that the said paper, thread, or twine canbe producedin a continuous piece of any length, and be spooled andbraided upon wellknown machinery for spooling other threads and twines,and with the same rapidity, sovthat hand-braiding may be entirelydispensed with,`there by reducing the cost of producing all thevarieties of this kind of braid more than one hundred fold. My saidimprovement is obviously applicable to the fabrication of hats, caps,and bonnets of various forms, all of which are included under the termhat, as a covering for the head. l

Having described my invention, what I claim, and desire to secure byLettersPatent,"'is-' A hat fabricated of paper thread or twine,substantially as described, asa new manufacture.

' onLine RICHARDS.

Witnesses:

'H. M. DAGGETT,

E. R., PRICE.

